While staying at Glen Eden, on Friday, May 25th, Ben, PJ, and I decided to take a hike into deep Creek Hot Springs. We drove from Corona up to the high desert at Hesperia, about an hour north, where we met Andrew. Andrew, who was very familiar with Deep Creek, lead the way and we drove about 10 miles to Bowen’s Ranch and the trail head where we parked, undressed, and started hiking down the trail.

The freehike down was about two miles, and not very difficult. As always, it felt so good to hike naked. The scenery was desert with nice views of Deep Creek and trees in the valley below - all very pretty in its own way.

After less than an hour we arrived at the steam and the hot springs. We crossed the cool stream, and climbed the cliffs above the springs for a few minutes to get a better view of the area. Two clothed men were sitting under a tree near the stream. No one else was around. Apparently Deep Creek is often crowed so we felt lucky – we had the springs to ourselves.

We soaked in the largest pool for some time. The temperature was just right. The water was very clear, with just a little algae. The pool was so deep near the cliff that you had to go under the water to touch the bottom, and it was easy to swim a few strokes. PJ tried several times to touch the bottom. It was wonderfully relaxing to sit in the warm water and talk with friends.

After about an hour PJ and I had to leave. Ben and Andrew stayed to soak and find other pools.

The hike out was more strenuous because everything was up hill. We passed one couple going down as we hiked out; they were clothed, but we stayed naked. They asked about people at the springs, and I said there were very few. I commented that it was too hot to hike nude. They seemed to agree.

It wasn’t too long before we returned to the car, got dressed, and headed back to Glen Eden. We stopped for a soda before getting on the freeway. A cool refreshment to end a wonderful time hiking and soaking at Deep Creek Hot Springs – a place we would definitely recommend to others – a place we will certainly go again

“In Idaho once, hiking out au naturel from a hot spring, we saw a man coming up the trail far below, clothed, so we stopped to dress - I looked down and he had doffed his duds and was natural as we were.” - Just Me

Saturday, May 30, 2009

“I (and sometimes my wife) have gone skinnyhiking . . . a number of times; in Idaho, Washington, and Kauai’s Na Pali trail. Haven’t done it since, oh, last weekend in the Cascades - deserted trail, hot day, no one else around - didn’t meet anyone for my hour hike - stopped at a creek crossing and climbed up on a ledge by a waterfall, out of sight of the trail, caught some sun and shade, dipped in a pool - aaah… gentle breezes, warm sun, what had been too hot became just right. A few brushes by plants as I walked the trails - gentle reminders of closeness to creation. Beautiful and freeing.” – Just Me

Ken: Several months ago I was diagnosed with diabetes. It was a shock. The doctor prescribed pills to lower my blood sugar that were photosensitive, so many of my naturist activities, including freehiking were curtailed. I hated that! I was totally motivated to change. At the doctor’s suggestion I immediately changed my diet. I lost weight. My blood sugar stabilized. In a short time I was able to stop the medicine, and was soon out in the sun gardening and freehiking again – what a relief. These actions nearly immediately normalized all of my diabetic symptoms.

“In the U.S., over 70 million people -- one in four -- have diabetes, and the conventional medical treatments currently being provided are killing people. However, there are natural, effective treatments that can control, and in the case of type 2 diabetes, even reverse the disease. Did you know the rate of diabetes has increased by 700 percent in the last five decades? That’s right. Right now, over 70 million people - one in four Americans - have either diabetes or pre-diabetes! It’s an epidemic of epic proportions that just keeps getting worse, and yet it’s one of the most avoidable chronic diseases there is. . .

Type 2 Diabetes is Curable in Nearly Everyone Without Drugs!! If one is compliant with these recommendations the likelihood of successfully going off of drugs and having normal blood sugars is close to 100%. Treating type 2 diabetes is simply a matter of implementing some basic strategies to improve your insulin and leptin resistance:

Exercise. Exercise is an absolutely essential factor, without which you’re highly unlikely to get this devastating disease under control. It is clearly one of the most potent ways to lower your insulin and leptin resistance. . . Typically, however, you’ll need large amounts of exercise, until you get your blood sugar levels under control.”

Ken: I find that nudity motivates me to me to exercise – especially to freehike. Nude hiking brings together so many positive feelings and positive motivations – the feel of sun and air on my body, the cooling as sweat evaporates, the visual beauty and interest of being one with nature, the aerobic beating of my heart. I love freehiking, so I easily get the exercise I need, and in the process it turns out overcome diabetes.

Dr. Mercola continues his recommendations:

“Eliminate grains and sugars. For the last 50 years, many people have been following the nutritional recommendations dictated by conventional health agencies, which advise a high complex carbohydrate, low saturated fat diet. The end result has been a 700 percent increase in diabetes in the same time frame and many have come to view diabetes as an incurable chronic disease… This is clearly not true, but it’s the inevitable result of seriously flawed dietary recommendations. Instead, you’ll want to eliminate foods that your body will react to by creating insulin, which includes all types of sugars and grains -- even “healthy” grains such as whole, organic grains. This means avoiding all breads, pasta, cereals, rice, potatoes, and corn (which is in fact a grain). You may even need to avoid fruits until your blood sugar is under control.”

Ken: Eating too much, being overweight, and nude exercise simply don’t match. I find I am less likely to crave unhealthy amounts of sugar and carbohydrates like soda and fast food when I garden nude and freehike frequently. And I know I look better when I’m slimmer with a nice tan. Since implementing my nude exercise program several months ago many people have approached me at work with complements about how healthy I look. These compliments make my exercise program even easier to maintain.

Dr. Mercola suggests another action:

“Optimize your vitamin D level. Interestingly, optimizing your vitamin D levels can not only help improve type 2 diabetes if you have it, but can likely eliminate the risk of type 1 diabetes (along with autoimmune diseases and autism) in your children if you are pregnant. It’s also vital for infants to receive the appropriate amounts of vitamin D in their early years for these same reasons. Ideally, you’ll want to do this by exposing a large amount of your skin to appropriate amounts of sunshine . . . on a regular basis, year-round. Your body can safely create up to 20,000 units of vitamin D a day this way.”

Ken: Getting out in the sun is the only reliable way to optimize vitamin D! The final straw – for me at least freehiking and other naturist activities cures diabetes – period! And curing diabetes is just one example. Living as a naturist is by far the healthiest way to live! I’ve known that since I first started freehiking years ago; I can’t believe I let life’s busy concerns get in the way of the approach to life I know to be most healthy, the lifestyle I enjoy most – naturism.

On March 7th, about noon, Lee, PJ, and Ken drove south from Salt Lake City to stay with Harrol and Kitty in the St. George area. We arrived to a wonderful nude dinner served by Kitty, and after a nice discussion went to bed early excited about the Saturday Freehike.

Saturday we drove south to the Cedar Pocket campground – just across the border into Arizona, and took the right turn on the dirt road heading into the Beaver Dam Wilderness area. After about 20 minutes we turned right on a much less traveled dirt road heading towards the red-rock cliffs. We parked after a short distance, undressed, and hiked over the hill and up a rocky wash through the desert landscape towards the cliffs.

The temperature was in the 70s - the warm sun felt wonderful on our nude bodies. Freehiking always feels so great, and is fantastic exercise.

We’d planned to shoot some photos on this hike, something we’ll do on many of the scenic hikes this year. PJ has been doing some nude modeling at colleges, and was excited to get a few new outdoor photos, and Lee had brought along his fancy camera for the occasion, so we hiked slowly, looking for some places to take a few photos. Those of us who were more interested in enjoying the hike and nature, hiked and explored while the photos were being taken. (You can see photos from the hike at: http://imageevent.com/kenandjane/stgeorgehike2008 )

The canyon was short, so it wasn’t too long before it was time to head back. Still, the freehike was very enjoyable.

After getting back to the truck and getting dressed, we drove the area for a couple of hours looking for places to hike in the future. There appears to be an excellent, long hike up a beautiful canyon south of Cedar Pocket campground. We’ll want to try that in the future.

We stayed again Saturday night with Harrol and Kitty, and returned to Salt Lake City early Sunday afternoon, the end to a fun Skinny Trip.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

[Freehiking has] “. . . also helped me to be more physically healthy. I used to hate hiking; when I would go hiking I would get exhausted, thirsty, and sweaty - it was simply a miserable experience. When I tried hiking nude I found it to be liberating and exhilarating, the feeling of walking, climbing, the sun, the wind and the feeling of freedom is amazing. I Think the feeling of freedom comes not solely from freedom of the restriction of clothing, but at least in my case it is more defiance against the restriction of establishment, of expectations of others, of tradition, even of some religious (incorrect non-scriptural) beliefs. I recently had a physical exam - for being 59 years old I am in excellent health. Being naked while hiking and exploring has become so normal feeling that much of the time I don't really notice until it is time to get dressed, after dressing I feel it hard to breath, and the belt and waist band feel like a cinch around my mid section; I feel restricted and controlled.” – Nude Explorer

In February 2007, PJ and I visited the De Anza Springs resort near the town of Jacumba, just three miles north of the boarder with Mexico, in California’s high central desert. We arrived in the early afternoon, checked in, and drove to our room. The room was average size, and quite nice, with a table big enough for four. After resting a little, we ate at the resort restaurant – very nice.

Saturday PJ and I freehiked along an old railroad track. We got a little lost at the start and came upon several wrecked railroad cars. PJ went inside and recovered a seat head rest. I took a photo of her waving from the train’s window. We bush-whacked our way up a small canyon until we found the trail we had planned to freehike. It was easy and beautiful with wonderful rock mountains and interesting cactus.

After about an hour it descended to the railroad track. We proceeded to freehike farther up the track, crossing several trellis bridges. After about an hour we reached a tunnel which bent through the mountain so it was quite dark in the middle. Looking ahead we could see that the track continued through several distance tunnels, for as far as we could see, so we turned around and hiked back up the track all the way to the resort, passing through another tunnel on the way.

The sun was warm; we definitely got some color. Why would anyone want to hike in clothes with such wonderful February sunshine? This was an interesting three-hour freehike. (We found out later that the railroad was still in use twice a day so we felt lucky the train hadn’t caught these two naked grandparents.)

We got back and soaked a while in the hot spa. It felt great. By the time we got out it was filled with twelve friendly naturists - the friendliest people on earth.

In the spa we’d asked if anyone was familiar with area hikes. One fellow said he’d introduce us to Clint, a fellow that did lots of freehiking. Cliff caught up with us at the dance and we arranged to meet him for a hike on Sunday.

Sunday morning we met Clint at 8:30 and started out. The wind was blowing, but we decided to hike anyway. Hiking with Clint was a real adventure. He lead us a long distance from the resort, to the top of a mountain. As we reached the top we felt like we were scaling K-2 nude, with the wind nearly blowing us over. From the top we could see hiking trails go on forever in every direction, clear to Mexico. De Anza has amazing hiking.

We hiked down the back side of the mountain to an abandoned mine. PJ quickly went to the end of the mine, and started chipping out some mineral deposits. After a short mining adventure, we started back. The hiking was cool enough that PJ didn’t get naked - a rare event. We returned after four hours, exhausted, and soaked in the spa again. We played some cards with some friends, ate dinner at the resort, and went to bed early.

Monday morning we checked out early so we could get to Shangri La near Phoenix in time to check in (it’s about five hours drive). As we said goodbye to our friends and the people at the resort we decided that De Anza Springs resort has the best nude hiking of any resort we ever visited. We highly recommend it, especially to our hiking friends; nude hiking doesn’t get any better. We definitely want to return again.

We visited De Anza Springs Resort the end of May 2007 especially because our friend Ben really wanted to experience the freehiking. We got in late, and then arose early for a hike. PJ was too burned up so she stayed at the trailer while Ken and Ben took a hike for several hours. De Anza freehiking is amazing; it goes on and on, seemingly forever. We especially enjoyed freehiking a boulder-filled canyon that we discovered as we returned. Here are some photos from this hike: http://imageevent.com/kenandjane/deanzahike?n=0 .

Friday, May 22, 2009

“Somebody else was concerned about the abundance of ticks out there in the wild. Excuse me, but ticks aren’t a problem to the nude. They like to get into hair and under clothing. Jeepers.” – All Nudist

PJ and I visited Shangri La Resort with another friend April 13-16, 2007. When we arrived immediately took a short freehike to the base of Daisy Peak which rises from the Desert behind the Resort. The cactus was blooming nicely, especially the Staghorn, the Hedge Hog, the Prickly Pear, and the Teddy Bear (see photo link below).

Saturday we got up early to hike with the unofficial Resort Guide, Steve, along with Brad, a visitor from Chicago. Steve’s been freehiking the area for at least 30 years, and knew every nook and cranny of the hills around the Resort. We visited a mine, several mining pits, the small building where the blasting caps were kept, and the miner’s campsite (well, tub, and garbage pit). The sun felt wonderfully warm on our nude bodies. As we hiked, we talked about the plants we passed by, searched for desert tortoises, and we looked out past the resort to the beautiful desert hills beyond. Along the way we planned a hike with Steve away from the resort for Sunday morning.

Sunday took an early freehike with Steve in the desert. We hiked several miles to a hill covered with Native American Petroglyphs. Along the way we took photos next to tall Saguaro Cactus. The scenery was fantastic! The wind blew some, but not enough to keep us from staying nude most of the way. We took a photo of PJ on top of the hill in her signature pose. Steve said: “Now that’s a beautiful photo.” It’s fantastic to hike nude and feel the sun and breeze caress your body. Why would anyone hike any other way?

When we returned we swam in the pool (very refreshing) and soaked up some more sun.

PJ and I visited Olive Dell Ranch in California one late afternoon/evening. We immediately undressed – everything except shoes and socks – and headed up the trail for a freehike. The weather was just breezy enough to keep or naked bodies comfortable. As we hiked we observed many branch trails we’ll certainly hike in the future. The dirt path was bordered by several varieties of brush. Blue and yellow flowers filled in spaces. We hiked to the top of a hill. On the valley below we could see Redlands, Youkipa, and San Bernadino. We took several photos, including some longer-distance photos of Olive Dell, to which we returned after about an hour. This was a totally enjoyable nude hike –great exercise. We drove our car naked to the clubhouse area. There we showered and headed to the spa where we soaked away our tired muscles from the hike.

“. . . the local authorities in the German region of Harz . . . came up with quite an original solution – a nude hiking track. A naked trip in the beautiful countryside of the Harz National Park – that is surely something that could attract new visitors.” – Tourism Review

Saturday, May 16, 2009

This is my first blog posting, so this is just a test really. I have been a freehiker for years, and I also enjoy a bit of wisdom from others, so I thought I'd start with a quote. Here is a quote about freehiking:

“You haven’t lived until you’ve hiked naked! Have you ever been walking along, in the wilderness or otherwise and thought “Gee, this would feel even better with out clothes”? Hiking nude may be the ultimate experience of freedom. Nothing between you and the air allows you to totally relax and become one with the environment.” – International Nudist

About Me

I'm Kenfreehiker & my beautiful/fun wife is PJ. We travel frequently with work, but maintain our home at Olive Dell Ranch (Colton, CA).
We’ve visited over 20 naturist resorts, 7 beaches, and 5 hot springs, have taken two nude boating trips in Southern Utah, have freehiked many places, and enjoy naturist home activities and parties.
We've lived for at Glen Eden in Corona CA. We have been board members at Olive Dell Ranch, where we call home, and enjoy creating Dellymaze Park and organizing the Bare Burro 5k.
One of our favorate pastimes is freehiking. For organized the Freehiking Utah Group that hiked at least twice a month. We now do most of our nude freeniking in California, where we organized the FreehikingCA group.
We are also the founders and moderators of a naturist travel club called "Skinny Trippers" that plans naturist travels and activities, gets together when possible, and then writes Skinny Reports (often with group photos) which are posted on our egroup – http://groups.google.com/group/skinnytrippers . (All are welcome to join this site.)
PJ and I love Christ, each other, our friends, and being naturists.